The Truth
by Hope Is A Waking Dream
Summary: In the two years she's been with him, Annabeth has never loved Luke. The truth is different. Her feelings are for someone else. But fighting for the person she loves means discovering who his actual boyfriend really is. The truth will surprise her. AU.


_**A/N:** You don't remember me, but I remember you! Hiya! It's been long since the last time I published something. Hopefully, this time I will finish a story. I know I'll manage it. I have one thing to say before you start reading: I don't hate Luke. Keep that in mind! I love him. R&R please, so I can know how this is!_

* * *

Chapter 1

Annabeth 

Annabeth lay on her bed, watching as snow drifted in front of the window and made its way towards the ground. It'd been snowing for hours now, a clear signal that winter was around the corner. The cold weather wasn't making her feel better. Her heart was still hammering against her chest, and her hair was sticky from all the sweat she'd produced minutes ago. The nightmare she'd had was still fresh in her mind―it'd involved one of her adoptive brothers: Matt (Who was in comma).

Matthew Chase had been found one month ago in the alleyway besides the building in which he lived, fainted, and with a baseball bat near his bleeding head. The nightmare Annabeth had had showed her something she didn't want to happen: Matt never waking up. What if it became real?

Pushing away all the bad thoughts forming in her mind, she jumped off her bed and decided to keep her mind clear by starting with her daily routine. She fetched the clothes she'd prepared the day before (Dark jeans, a colorful t-shirt, and a white hoodie with 'N. Y. U.' printed on the front) and walked to her personal bathroom to start with a long, warm shower. The steaming water felt great around her body with the chilly weather over the city; it made her forget about everything.

She felt completely relaxed by the time her shower was over. While walking back to her bed she felt as if the ground had been replaced by clouds. Bending down, she put on her favorite trainers. Those shoes were her favorite ones. Even when Matthew and Bobby weren't allowed to touch money (Don't ask why) they'd gathered as much dollars as possible one year before to buy her those trainers for her graduation. There was nothing special about them. Yet, she loved them.

The door of her room creaked while she combed her hair. She turned to see Matt's twin (And her other brother) entering the room with a shameful expression. He had dirty-blond curls, brown eyes and was tall for the age he had. The clothes he was wearing made Annabeth smile: Camo pants, red Converse and a white hoodie with a construction machine on the back. She knew that he dressed like that because he missed Matt, and they wore those clothes when they went camping to the laundry room.

"Annie," Bobby said, staring down at the ground, "will you come with us to see Matt today?"

"Of course I will," Annabeth answered, giving her younger brother a smile. She'd wanted to see Matt for two weeks, but homework hadn't allowed her to do it. Hopefully, today she would; all of her homework was done already.

"Do you think he'll wake up today?" It was obvious that Bobby tried to appear strong. Yet, she could see sadness in his eyes. He missed his twin, surely; they'd been inseparable until the day Matt had been found in comma.

Annabeth smiled, placing her hairbrush on the hairdresser and kneeling in front Bobby. He didn't stop fiddling with his fingers until he felt his nineteen-year-old sister's hands on his shoulders. "I'm sure he'll wake up today," Annabeth assured. "And if he doesn't, he'll wake up some other day. But I know he'll come back."

"But what if he doesn't?" The little boy was starting to forget about his strong appearance, tears welling in his eyes.

"Don't think like that. Think positively. Maybe if Matt senses that we need him he'll wake up. I don't know when it'll happen, but I bet he'll be back soon."

"It's a promise?" Bobby lifted his stare to meet her sister's.

"It's a promise, little B," she said with a smile, ruffling his curly hair.

"Awesome. Oh, and Mom says breakfast's ready. Come with me?"

"I'll be down in a minute. I have to finish getting ready."

"Okay."

Bobby left the room running, his newly acquired happiness noticeable. Annabeth felt happy too; she liked to be there when his little brothers needed support. Releasing a chuckle, she got on her feet and continued smoothing her hair. Once it was as smooth as her wavy hair could be, she tugged it into a loosen ponytail and put a beanie on her head. She took her keys, wallet and cellphone and, in a second, she was joining the Chases at the dining table.

"Morning." She smiled, flopping onto the chair next to Bobby's. Not wasting time, she pulled a dish with bacon and scrambled eggs closer to her place.

"Good morning, Annabeth." Athena Chase smiled, cutting her eggs in a very formal way.

"Good morning," Frederick Chase said, his stare glued to today's newspaper. Annabeth had never understood what was so interesting about reading of people that get married and have children.

She started eating, savoring the delicious food her mother had prepared. Athena had never prepared very complicated dishes, but the ones she prepared tasted extremely delicious (Or, at least, Annabeth thought that).

"So…we're going to visit Matt today?" Annabeth asked.

"_We_ are going to visit him; we don't know if _you_ are going," replied Athena. "You've been very busy with homework lately, so we didn't include you in our plans. Are you coming with us?"

"Of course I'm going with―shit." The fork she was holding almost slipped from her hand. She'd forgotten there was something to do later, and it wasn't something she could cancel. Before her mother could scold her for swearing (Athena didn't let her do it with the twins near) she continued talking. "I just remembered I have something to do. I can't go with you. Piper and I are going to Thalia's, and I can't cancel this time."

"_What_?" Bobby threw his fork inside his bowl of cereal (Yeah, a fork) and frowned at his sister. "You said you'd go!"

"I'm sorry, little B, but I can't go. I can't believe I forgot it. Thalia will kill me if I cancel our meeting again. You know how scary she is."

"But I don't want to be alone!"

"You won't be alone, Bobby. Mom and Dad will be with you."

"But they're old and―"

"You know what?" Annabeth chimed in, noticing her parents' annoyed expressions. "I want you to make me a favor now that I won't go with you. Make sure little M is okay for me, okay? And if he wakes up tell him how much I miss him. Would you do that for me?"

"It's like a mission?"

Annabeth smiled, ruffling her brother's hair for second time in the day. "Yeah, it's like one of those missions you and Matt see on TV."

"So, can I be called Agent B?"

"Yes, you can be called Agent B, Agent B." She grinned .

"Awesome."

Bobby continued eating Lucky Charms, his and Matt's favorite cereal. Annabeth knew he ate it hoping that Matt woke up thanks to the 'magical cereal'. Smiling, she continued with her breakfast.

Once her hunger was gone and her teeth were clean, she took her backpack from the entrance. Turning to her family before leaving to another exhausting day at N. Y. U., she shouted: "See you all later! Tell little M how much I love him!" She turned on her heels and left the house.

**x-x-x**

Annabeth was walking through her school's corridors, heading to her locker like every morning, when a girl appeared from nowhere and made her jump. Her heart accelerated as much as earlier, and the girl beside her started laughing at her shocked expression. "Morning, Chase," Thalia said.

"'Morning'? That's all you say after giving me a heart attack?" Annabeth exclaimed, taking quick breaths to calm her heart down.

"Calm your tits, woman. It's not my fault you're too distracted to notice me!" Annabeth blushed; the kind of things Thalia said embarrassed her. "Are you ready to see some movies after school? I'm in the mood to see something spooky enough to keep me awake for various nights."

"Yeah, I guess I'm ready." Annabeth reached to locker C-50 and drew the door open. "I expect you to love me for going. Instead of going to visit Matthew I'll be at your house."

"How is he, by the way?" Thalia knew everything about what had happened to little Matt. She, like every living being―except the person who'd hit Matthew―loved the twins.

"I don't know." Annabeth sighed, grabbing her sketch pad from her now open locker. "It's been weeks since the last time I visited him. Mom and Dad say his condition hasn't changed. Everyone's starting to lose hope, but I know he'll come back. I know it."

Talking about her little brother was depressing now that Bobby wasn't near. As if sensing that, Thalia decided to talk about another subject. "Don't you get bored of having Architectural Drawing classes? It sounds complicated. I wouldn't be able to draw all those complicated schemes you do."

"It's a quite interesting subject, you know." Annabeth, in her mind, thanked Thalia for talking about something she liked. Even though Thalia could be rude sometimes, Annabeth thought she was the best friend someone could have. "You know I've wanted to be an Architect since I was a kid."

"You were a strange kid, you know. While kids want to be firefighters, ballerinas, or artists, you wanted to be an Architect. My dream was to be an international Chef."

"I wasn't weird! I was realistic. And―"

The arrival of someone didn't let her finish talking. She realized that her eyes were closed. When she opened them, she found a blond boy kissing her. Her mind recognized the person immediately. "Morning, babe," Luke said, running his fingers through his hair. Every girl in the corridor turned to stare at his beautiful blue eyes. Even though he was her boyfriend, Annabeth didn't feel jealous. In fact, she didn't like when he kissed her. Her love for him had vanished a week after their relationship had started.

"Hi," she answered, pretending to be seriously in love. After being two years at his side, she knew very well how to pretend that; a goofy smile appeared on her face, and she blinked various times as if he were a God.

"I want to make you a question: Don't you notice something different on me?" Luke grinned, straightening his back as if he were a model. In her mind, Annabeth rolled her eyes. The way he always talked about himself had killed her love for him. In the years they'd been together, they'd never talked about her. It was always Luke, Luke and Luke.

"No, I don't," she said, eying him from head to toes. There was nothing different in his appearance. He was, like always, attractive. There wasn't a change in his muscular body, and he hadn't cut his hair. "You're wearing new shoes?"

"Incorrect!" He beamed. "Did you notice my new jacket?"

For the first time that day, Annabeth noticed the blue-and-white jacket Luke was wearing. It had the school's logo where the heart was located, and there was a number printed in the middle of the chest. Those kinds of jackets were worn only by members of the football team. "That means…?" Annabeth tried to sound excited, as if she didn't know he'd gotten the place he'd always wanted in the football team.

"That means I got the place I've always wanted in the football team!"

Oh. My. God. _So_ exciting…

Again, Annabeth rolled her eyes in her mind. Luke had bothered her for months saying: 'I want that place', and: 'They need me', and: 'I'm hot. I have huge muscles. I've got what a football player needs.' Hopefully, now that he was in the team, she would get some peace.

"That's great…" This time, Annabeth couldn't pretend excitement. She felt more annoyed than anything.

Luke seemed to notice her change of mood, because he tilted his head to one side and asked, "What's wrong, babe? You don't seem happy for me. Aren't you happy for your Big Bear?" Great. He'd never paid her attention and decided _now_ was the moment to do it.

"I'm _so_ sorry for not sounding excited, _Big Bear_! I'm _so_ happy for you! Congratulations!" Annabeth poured as much sarcasm as possible to every word (Especially to 'Big', 'Bear' and 'so'). The only person who didn't notice the sarcasm was Luke; Thalia was shaking her head; Luke, in other hand, smiled and kissed Annabeth's nose.

"We could celebrate later at my place, you know." Luke grinned, tugging at Annabeth's waist. Their bodies got closer, and now she could feel his breath falling on her face. "I've been thinking a lot about, you know, having our first time. What do you think?"

Annabeth was thankful at Thalia; the last one chimed in, grabbing Annabeth's wrist and saying, "Sorry, big guy, but she's got plans already. Now, if you excuse us, we have to go and talk about…you know, what ladies always talk about, like…bras, panties and hot guys. See ya."

"Okay," shouted Luke as Thalia and Annabeth walked away. "Think of me!"

Once Luke was far, Annabeth sighed. "Thanks, Thals," she said, removing a lock of blonde hair from her face. "I owe you one."

"You owe me more than one, darling." Thalia shook her head. "Remind me again: Why are you still with that jerk? You don't love him. My god, you don't even _like_ him."

"I know I don't like him, but…I don't want to hurt him. We've been together for two years, you know. And even though he's been a disgusting boyfriend and has slept with more girls than any _teacher_ in this school, I think he loves me. Why would he keep me by his side if he didn't feel something for me?"

Thalia waited until they reached locker G-25 to say something more. "He doesn't deserve you, you know? You deserve something better than that jerk."

Both of them stopped talking about Luke, remaining in silence. Thalia started taking books and utensils from her locker. Meanwhile, Annabeth stared at everything and everyone but her best friend. The school was quite crowded. And even though there were a lot of people, she could see clearly a blond boy kissing a brunette girl far away.

Before she could continue talking about her boyfriend, someone pushed Annabeth on the back. Luckily, she thought fast and ducked before her face rammed into Thalia's locker.

"Hey, Thals," someone said from behind her.

She turned on her heels to find a boy standing where she'd been seconds earlier. Perseus Jackson. He was Thalia's cousin, Annabeth's enemy and one of the three hottest guys of N. Y. U (Luke owned the first place in that list). Jet black hair, beautiful green eyes, muscular body. Briefly, he was handsome.

"Watch your step, jerk!" Annabeth shouted, raising her gaze to stare at Percy's face. She was shorter than him, but she could be scary with just staring angrily at someone.

"Oh, you are _here_, stupid?" Percy asked with a lopsided grin, leaning one shoulder against the lockers.

"Yep, I am here, and I'm not a stupid. If you _really_ want to see a stupid person then you should look at a mirror. _There _you'll find someone that excels at the work of being stupid."

"Well, you're a…a…"

"I'm a what, genius? Let me guess: Your tiny brain isn't capable of thinking of another insult."

"You're an idiot." Percy's skin turned red, but it returned to its normal color in a second.

"If _I_ am an idiot with my perfect grades, how are _you_ called, then?"

"Calm down, Annabeth." Thalia appeared with an enormous grin. "You shouldn't mess with my cousin. You should mess up with someone at your level. You're making my little cousin look like an idiot, and if that's what you want to do at least do it privately, not in front of all the school."

"Hey!" Percy exclaimed, turning red again. "You should be defending me. I'm your cousin."

"Shut up, Percy. I'm just saying the truth. You're not a problem for Annabeth. Now, you must forgive me, but I need to go. I didn't read _Moby-Dick_ for Mr. Darren's class, so I'll have to copy someone's work before he kills me. Or worse: Before he makes me read the book. Bye!"

Thalia patted Annabeth's shoulder, slapped Percy and started running while singing a song Annabeth couldn't recognize. Soon, the only people in the corridor were just her and Percy. He stared at his surroundings, as if making sure there was no one near, and gave her a quick smile. Then, he left just like everyone else.

**x-x-x**

Annabeth wondered if the creatures created by J. K. Rowling were real, because she felt as if a Dementor had sucked all the happiness from her. All she wanted to do was cry in her bed, fall asleep and wake up thinking everything had been a nightmare. She couldn't believe her parents were thinking of unplugging little Matt. He was going to come back, she knew it! But her parents didn't think like her.

"Annabeth, you should talk with them!" Thalia said at the other side of the line.

Annabeth placed her phone on her other ear and continued talking while walking to her place. "They're not here," she said. "They'll stay with little M today, expecting him to wake up to tell them what to do. Bobby will stay with them. I'll have to wait until tomorrow."

"And why are they thinking of _killing_ their own son?"

"Because doctors said Matt's condition hasn't changed, and Mom and Dad think he's suffering. But…I know he'll be back, I know it!" She started sobbing as soon as she'd finished talking. "They can't unplug him! I know I sound very selfish, but I don't want to lose my little brother!"

"Calm down, Annabeth, calm down. Take deep breaths. Relax. You won't be able to think clearly if you're sad. What you need is someone to cheer you up now. Why don't you call Luke?"

Annabeth, despite her sadness, started laughing. Soon, she felt better. "Thanks for cheering me up, Thals. And if you were talking seriously: No, I won't call Luke. The last thing I need today is another 'Me, Myself and I' conference given by him."

This time, both girls laughed. People in the elevator kept throwing Annabeth strange glares. "You know," Thalia said, breathing deeply, "you should break up with him. I know you don't want to hurt him, but if he _does_ love you, you'll hurt him more if you let time pass. You need someone at your side that can make you feel better in moments like this."

"I'll think of it, Thalia. I promise I'll do it." Annabeth sighed. "You're right, and what I need right now is someone who can keep me distracted from bad thoughts. I'll visit my best friend."

"But you just left my house!"

"Not you; my _other_ best friend."

"Oh." Thalia didn't talk for a couple of seconds, and when she did it Annabeth had already arrived to the tenth floor of her building. People that knew her glared at her, because they knew she lived five floors beneath. What was she doing here? "You know, you always talk about him or her, but you've never told me his or her name. I like to know the names of my rivals."

"Don't make me laugh, Thalia." Annabeth started laughing. "I need to go. I'm just outside my other best friend's house. Talk to you tomorrow."

"Tomorrow's Saturday, so don't call me early. I'll wake up late. You know, we should do something tomorrow again."

"I'll think of it. I need to go. Bye!"

Thalia didn't have time to reply, because Annabeth ended the call and walked along the corridor before her. Finally, when she reached the last door (Door one hundred and sixty-five) she knocked on it twice. A minute later, the door opened, and a boy with jet black hair stood in front of her.

"What are you doing here, stupid?" Percy Jackson asked, leaning against the doorframe.

A minute of silence. Then, both of them grinned, and Annabeth threw her arms around the boy's neck, pulling his lips to hers. She loved to kiss him, and to savor the saltiness from his lips. Yeah, despite their rivalry there was something between them (Secretly, of course).

"I'm never getting tired of telling it: You're such a good actor. Thalia thinks we still hate each other." Annabeth grinned, still kissing him.

"You're not so bad yourself, you know," Percy replied. "D'you want to go to my room?"

"Not tonight. I just need you to kiss me, please, and distract me. I don't―I don't want to remember how sad I feel."

"You're sad?" Percy started to sound worried and separated his lips from Annabeth's. "Why? Who made you feel like that?"

"I told you do I don't want to remember why I feel sad! Please."

"Okay."

Percy lifted her from the ground, taking her to the couch. And they continued kissing, until Annabeth's mind started forgetting about Matt and her parents.

They'd been best friends (Secretly, too) for years, since the day they'd separated from their teachers and got lost on the beach. The rest of the students returned home. Meanwhile, both of them had to return by themselves: Long hours of watching only sand and water, and with no one but themselves. They were forced to talk to each other, and they got along very well. But their relationship didn't start until the day of their graduation from Goode High.

Since that night, both of them had been together. They'd been there for each other when they needed support, and they'd spent various nights together. Annabeth didn't feel ashamed. Luke had slept with half school already. And what she was doing was be happy. Her feelings were for Percy, not for Luke.

Whenever she felt bad for being with Luke and Percy at the same time, she remembered how Percy's and her relationship had started and felt better.

_Flashback_

_Annabeth couldn't lie to anyone: She was feeling nervous. As she, Thalia, Silena and Piper got closer to the Dares' house near the beach (Where their graduation party would be), she felt even worse. The other girls didn't stop making plans while she stared through the window of the car._

"_Come on, Annabeth, we're all in this together!" Thalia punched Annabeth on the shoulder._

"_I don't want to do it. I don't care if you think the boys from American Pie are 'geniuses'. I'm not planning to lose my virginity―and much less with Luke!" Annabeth, after one year of being with Luke, already knew that he slept with other girls. And she didn't want to have her first time with someone who'd had his first time millions of girls ago._

"_We're _not_ going to lose our virginity. We'll _try_ to lose it. If you fail you don't have to try it again."_

"_No, I won't be part of your agreement. Besides, it'd be rude to do it! We'll be in a private house!"_

"_Do you think Rachel Dare doesn't know that people will have sex in her house?" Silena chimed in. "Annabeth, she offered her house near the beach because she didn't want people having sex in her actual house. Most students will try, just like us, to have their first time. Even Dare."_

"_Leave her. She's just a coward," Thalia said, rolling her eyes at Annabeth._

"_Don't call me like that," Annabeth snapped, glaring at Thalia._

"_Join our agreement, then. I swear that we're not the only ones who will try to have their first time. I can name other people: the Stolls, Dare, Beckendorf, and even my little cousin. If you try and Luke rejects you, you don't have to try again. I swear it."_

_Annabeth remained silent for various minutes, and the other girls continued making plans. She knew Luke wouldn't want to be with her; he'd want to be with someone else to celebrate he finished high school. Then, if he rejected her, she wouldn't have to try again. "Okay," she said, sure that her plan would work. "I'll join your agreement."_

_Soon, she was forced to listen to the other girls' plans. Annabeth pretended to be in the conversation, but her mind was somewhere else in the planet. As soon as Silena turned the car off and the Dares' house was at sight, every girl except Annabeth started working on having their first time._

_She walked as slow as possible towards the house, where at least a hundred students were dancing. The high volume of the music was making the ground shake. Various people, like Silena had said, were already walking into the enormous house holding hands. _

"_Hey, babe," Luke appeared from nowhere, giving her a kiss. She ran her tongue over her lips, tasting something strange. Luke's lips tasted like strawberry. She looked quickly at his lips and found pink lip gloss on his mouth. As if sensing her gaze, he used the hem of his shirt to clean himself, but Annabeth already knew he'd been with another girl. Even though she didn't like him, she felt angry._

"_Hi," she said, trying to sound okay._

"_Want to take a walk?" He offered her his arm, and she took it, remembering the agreement she'd joined._

"_Okay."_

_The moment they started walking away, Annabeth regretted having accepted. Luke started telling her (For the thousandth time) how he'd won his medal of Best Runner and his trophy of Hot Guy. She was feeling annoyed; she'd heard those stories so much that she knew what words he'd say._

_They walked a mile, until they were far from everyone. The sea was another mile far, so they remained there and faced the distant ocean. "And that's how I won the trophy. Wasn't I fantastic?"_

"_Yeah, you were," Annabeth lied. Wanting to get far from Luke as soon as possible, she kissed him. He placed his hands on her waist and pulled her closer. They kissed, and she didn't know what to do now. If she really wanted to have her first time she would've know what to do, but she just wanted him to reject her now to go away._

_As expected, Luke stopped kissing her and got on his feet. "I, uh, need to go. I've got something to do at home." Annabeth tried to appear upset, but she was happy. "I'll call you tomorrow, okay, babe?"_

_Without waiting for a response, he left. Annabeth was now alone, and she sat happily on the sand. "I _tried_," she muttered, thinking of Thalia. She didn't want to go back to the party. Luke would be there, she was sure, and with another girl. And the other girls would make her questions. So she just stayed there watching the sea._

"_Hey, idiot," a voice said from behind, and she almost shrieked. She turned around as fast as a flash and found Percy standing behind her._

"_Shit, don't scare me like that!" she shouted, punching Percy's shoulder. He just laughed, as if he hadn't felt the hit. "What are you doing here, anyways?"_

"_You should know," he answered. "We got lost in a beach a couple of years ago, idiot. You should remember I love the sea. I'm on my way to the beach. I just want to be away from the party. Everyone's eating themselves and searching rooms. Some aren't even _doing it_ in rooms."_

"_I guess I won't go back, then." She shook her head, imagining Silena and Beckendorf entering a room, or Piper and Jason, or―_

_She shook her head again, clearing her mind. Those weren't pretty thoughts._

"_Want to come with me?" Percy asked out of nowhere, stuffing his hands in his trousers. Thinking about being away from the Dares' house, she nodded. They started walking another mile, until the sea was in front of their noses. Annabeth liked to hear how it roared, and loved how the wind slashed against her face._

_They sat on the sand, admiring the enormity of the sea. Finally, Percy broke the silence and talked. "Can you believe our rivalry ended here? Not _here_, but in another place similar like this?"_

"_Oh, it hasn't ended, sweetheart." Annabeth grinned. "I still think I'm better than you, and I'm sure you think it isn't right, so our rivalry is intact."_

_Percy laughed, and he remained silent, his gaze glued to the water. Annabeth didn't say anything else and did the same as him, until she found something more interesting to do. Surprisingly, she was staring at his face. He looked handsome beneath the moon's light. Before she could say something, her phone vibrated in her purse (She hated those things, but her mother had convinced her to use it just that day)._

_Thalia had sent her a message. As she read it, anger crept to her again._

_**You won't do it with Luke, right? Piper and I just saw him entering a room with another girl (Unless you're using a wig).**_

_She threw her phone in her ugly purse and continued staring at the sea, chuckling annoyed. Noticing her anger, Percy turned to her and asked, "What's wrong?"_

"_Oh, nothing," she replied crossly, "just that Luke's in Rachel's house having sex with another girl."_

"_Oh… I'm sorry you found about that."_

"_Yeah, I'm not. I really don't love him."_

"_Why are you with him, then?"_

_She sighed, grabbing handfuls of sand to get distracted. "I don't know. I don't even understand myself. I've never loved him, but I think he does. He's the worst boyfriend in the world, and he's never tried to win my love, but he's always wanted me at his side. I'm scared of hurting him if he _really_ feels something for me."_

"_Oh. I'm not good at giving tips, so I don't know what to say. Sorry." Percy turned red, staring down at his hands._

"_Don't say anything. But…thanks for listening."_

_Annabeth started throwing handfuls of sand in the air, feeling angrier. Why was she with Luke? Luckily she wasn't in love with him, or Thalia's message would've hurt her. Yeah, it would've hurt her. Why did she worry about hurting him or not? He _would've_ hurt her!_

"_Calm down," said Percy, rubbing his eyes. "I'll be blind by the end of the night if you continue doing that."_

"_I'm sorry." Annabeth turned red and ran a hand through her hair._

"_Don't worry." Then, out of nowhere, he grinned and stood up. "What you need to do is get distracted. You know, so you can forget about your anger. Stand up."_

_Annabeth did as instructed, but she didn't know what he was planning to do. "And how am I going to do that? Get distracted, I mean."_

"_You have to do something fun. Risky. Something capable of keeping you worried about one thing: That someone finds you."_

"_I don't understand."_

"_Close your eyes."_

_Once more, she followed Percy's instructions. She heard him moving a lot, until there was silence. Then, besides the sound of the sea and the wind, the only sound she could hear was a loud _splash!

_One second before Percy shouted, "Open your eyes," she stared at the sea and found his head emerging through the water's surface. He was grinning, and his hair was glued to his forehead. One foot away from Annabeth there was a bundle of clothes resting on the ground, including Percy's Calvin Klein underwear._

_Annabeth blushed and shouted, "What are you doing? Come back here and get dressed!"_

_Ignoring her, Percy bellowed, "Come in! This is fun, and risky! It'll keep your mind distracted!"_

"_I'm not getting in there! Wouldn't you be ashamed if someone found―"_

"_Everyone's having sex in Rachel's house! No one will come here! And no, I wouldn't be ashamed, because what I'm doing is not as bad as what everyone's doing at the party! Come on, don't be a coward!"_

_Annabeth frowned. Why was everyone calling her coward today? Percy stared at her, waiting for an answer, while she thought. Finally, she said, "Okay." Before she could say 'Close your eyes,' Percy turned around, facing the horizon line._

"_I can't believe I'm doing this," she muttered as she took off her clothes, making sure no one was watching. She ran towards the water, feeling something in her gut as she did it. When she jumped into the sea she felt better. Percy had been right. Her mind was worried about someone finding her, and that made everything fun. She started laughing while Percy turned around grinning at her._

"_I told ya this was fun," Percy said, laughing. Annabeth kept her naked torso in the water so he wouldn't see her. They grinned at each other, gazing back at their clothes to make sure they were still there._

"_Very," she agreed._

_When Annabeth stopped laughing her gut hurt. She'd laughed too much. As she breathed deeply to feel better, a wave hit her and filled her mouth with salty water. Percy laughed as she spit the water._

"_You know," he said, tilting his head to one side, "you look…beautiful with your hair wet."_

_As if they were crazy, they laughed again. Annabeth thought she'd need a new gut soon. Then, she realized what Percy had said. "Thanks," she said, smiling. _

"_I'm just saying the truth," Percy shrugged._

_Annabeth felt something strange in her heart. It felt extremely heavy. She found herself smiling at Percy, and he was smiling back at her. The waves seemed to move them closer to each other. Finally, forgetting about hiding her torso, she wrapped her arms around Percy's neck and kissed him. She was surprised when he kissed her back, and even more when she felt something she'd never felt with Luke._

"_What was that for?" Percy asked, always keeping his eyes on her face. He never looked down at her body, and she wanted to kiss him even more for that._

"_I don't know," Annabeth answered sincerely. "I just felt a necessity to do it. And when I did it―"_

"_It felt right."_

_Both of them nodded, smiling, and without another word they continued kissing. Soon, she was sitting on his lap, and before anything else happened that night, Percy muttered. "You know, the Stolls wanted me to be with Rachel tonight. She's nice and all, but I told them that I want my first time to be with someone different. Someone special. And I think I found her."_

_For first time that night, she felt special and loved._

_The following day, she was the only one who'd had her first time. Thalia had spent the night spying on Luke. Piper had accidentally hit Jason on the groin. Silena would've done it, but she and Beckendorf had spent the night staring at the sky and promising to do it in a better place._

_Annabeth said that she hadn't done anything, though. She didn't want them asking, 'How was it?' She didn't want them to know it hadn't been with Luke. And she _definitely_ didn't want them to know she'd spent the night with Thalia's cousin (She already felt strange about knowing that Piper was going out with her brother)._

_End of Flashback_

Her lips were swollen after minutes of kissing Percy, and now she felt better. She was thankful to him for always being the one to cheer her up. She leaned her head against his shoulder and stared at the wall. "You know," she said, "Thalia told me I should break up with Luke. That I need someone at my side that can make me feel better when I'm sad. And I think she's right. I should do it. I don't know why I'm still with him when the person with whom I should be is here."

Percy didn't reply. Maybe she'd said something wrong. After all, they'd never talked about their relationship. She stared at him and noticed he was smiling.

"What?" she asked.

"Nothing," Percy answered. "I'm just…happy. We've never talked about what's going on between us. It just happened. We've seen each other for one year, kissed, and, you know, slept together. But we've never talked about it. I've wanted to do it, but I always get scared. But now we're talking. And now I'm completely sure we love each other. You love me, right? Or did I just say something that made me look like an idiot?"

Annabeth laughed. "Yes, Percy, I love you." She felt something strange in her gut. "Wow, it feels strange to talk about us. But it's the truth. I love you. I love you, Perseus Jackson."

"I love you too." He smiled.

"Thalia's right. I'm gonna break up with Luke so we can be together."

Out of nowhere, Percy turned pale. "Just…be careful, okay? Find the correct moment to do it."

"Why did you turn pale?" She frowned. "Is there something you're not telling me?"

"Yes, there is. But I won't say it. I don't want to scare you. Just be careful. In fact, try to 'catch' him with another girl. He'll believe you're breaking up with him because you're angry. Don't make him angry, please."

"Why? Percy, you're scaring me."

Percy shook his head. "I won't say anything. The only thing I can say is: Do you think you really know him?"

Annabeth didn't say anything more. Did she really know Luke?


End file.
